Joey Grant looks after this beautiful garden and this week he shares the joys of his work here.
How long have you been working on the Sister of Mercy garden?
It’s coming up to twenty years.
What is your favourite plant?
I have a few which include the Pieris forest flame and mountain fire, azaleas and forsythia.
What is your favourite feature in the garden?
Everything in the garden is a delight! I work in the garden so I don’t have the luxury of sitting on a patio drinking tea.
What is your favourite season and why?
You can probably guess by the favourite plants that I chose. Spring fills me with pleasure, as the new growth appears bringing new life to the garden.
What work gives you the most pleasure in the garden?
I enjoy working the flower beds and cutting the grass. When these jobs have been done the garden looks at its best.
Any irritations in the garden. How do you cope?
Slugs! I don’t use pellets so the slugs make a tasty meal for the birds to feed on. Beer traps can be effective.
What is your best gardening tool?
The spade, it is a very versatile tool. Closely followed by the rake.
Top Tip for spring?
If you plant camellias in the garden, put them in a place where the early morning sun doesn’t hit them as this scorches the flowers.
Any plans for the future?
More tree pruning this year. The trees we have would get too big if they were just left to their own devices. I will be replacing some old or dead plants in the garden as well to brighten things up for summer.
